On Wednesday, our bargaining team met the District for a “pre-negotiations” session on the budget. The District said they would present on the budget, agreed to do so, but then did not. Our team was a prepared with a presentation of our own to which the District responded
While our focus has been how can we rebuild the college so that students have access to a wide diversity of courses and programs and that faculty and staff can receive competitive salaries, the District’s 8-year budget plan is consistent with a downsized college that keeps faculty salaries below 2007 levels through at least 2021! This budget is highlighted despite the District’s recognition that we deserve a raise. But actions speak louder than words. The actions the District takes is to continue to squirrel money towards larger and larger reserves and spend millions more on consultants. Vice Chancellor of 
Finance & Administration Ron Gerhard acknowledged the College’s 12.9% reserves were higher than the Board-approved goal of 8-9% and much higher than the State Chancellor’s recommendation (NOT requirement) of 5%. The 8 year plan would raise reserves to over 16%! The District’s budget for consultants is now over $4 million, an increase of over $3 million over the last 4 years! AFT 2121 also demanded the Citizens Oversight Committee be convened to ensure Prop A monies are used as intended by San Francisco voters.
Both sides agree the enrollment crisis is a threat to our college. We continued to push the District to address issues around enrollment at the negotiations table, as its fiscal impact will reverberate throughout faculty working conditions, class size and cancellation policies, faculty compensation and other contractual concerns. The District insists enrollment issues fall outside of bargaining and are instead planning a series of community-wide colloquiums.
The District continues to insist that AFT members can NOT be allowed to observe negotiations. So we will be outside the Negotiations session holding an Informational Picket to educate our administration about the value of transparency. Join us next week at our first official negotiations session. Stand in solidarity with the Bargaining Team and join the picket on Wednesday, April 15, 2:00pm-3:00pm, Wellness Center (Room 103).
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